The escarpment is rich in archaeological discoveries both from the Dogon and the earlier Tellem society. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Identification. ETHNONYM: Panjabi Division of Labor. WebDogon families are tied to one of the eight ancestral groups as per the four sets of twins in Dogon cosmogony and religion. [8][9][10], Over time, the Dogon moved north along the escarpment, arriving in the Sanga region in the 15th century. They were one of the last people in West Africa to lose their independence and come under French rule.[18]. Dogon religion and Dogon philosophy both expressed a haunting sense of the original loss of twin-ness. The Dogon migrated after the empire's collapse to the cliffs of the Bandiagara plateau. 16th-20th Century. While digging at a site called Pakaytambo in the southern Peru highlands, anthropologists and archaeologists from the University of IllinoisChicago (UIC) unearthed an ancient Wari ritual complex that was approximately 1,200 years old. They purchase sugar, salt, European merchandise, and many animal products, such as milk, butter, and dried fish. A secret language known as sigi so is used by members of the men's society (awa ) in connection with religious rites. Craft specialization is determined by gender and caste. Encyclopedia of World Cultures. Villages usually contain a single localized lineage whose dwellings are grouped around the "great house" (ginna ) of the head. Paulme, Denise (1940). The Chilling Mystery of the Octavius Ghost Ship, What is a Wendigo? This enigmatic figure is an ancestor figure from the Dogon people of Mali. Signs of other contacts and origins are evident in Dogon art. For the ethnic group of the Kingdom of Dagbon in the north of Ghana, see. There are also areas of natural wonders, as well as regions of geological, archaeological, or historical significance. The Dogon languages show few remnants of a unique noun class system, an example of which is that human nouns take a distinct plural suffix. The Dogon are Each caste is endogamous, and members do not take part in any of the common religious cults. A hogon is a religious figure as well as a temporal authority;[1] the hogon may be hereditary or may be chosen from among the village elderscustom varies from place to place. WebDogon or Tellem peoples (?) [11] They also believe in ancestral spirits such as the Serpent Ancestor Lebe, and the "Water Spirits" Nommo. The 'Awa' is characterized by the intricate masks worn by members during rituals. The great annual Feast of Sowing (bulu ) begins in April or May, prior to the beginning of the rainy season, in all the villages of the region. In conjunction with the council of elders, he makes decisions concerning public affairs. 35 Issue 2. [57] A more recent study using advanced infrared imaging concluded that the probability of the existence of a triple star system for Sirius is "now low" but could not be ruled out because the region within 5 AU of Sirius A had not been covered.[58]. Formally, wives join their husband's household only after the birth of their first child. The appealing factor lies in many raw, visual, fetishized pursuits and compelling cultural narratives. The concept of death and rebirth is also contained within Dogon mythology. Until the masqueraders have completed their dances, and every ritual has been performed, any misfortune can be blamed on the remaining spirits of the dead (Davis, 68). The Dogon are an ethnic group indigenous to the central plateau region of Mali, in West Africa, south of the Niger bend, near the city of Bandiagara, and in Burkina Faso. These are two story building with separate areas for men and women. During the colonization of Mali by the French, the inhabitants of the escarpment were able to use caves and tunnels to avoid the Europeans and were able to preserve their way of life. [3], The Dogon are best known for their religious traditions, their mask dances, wooden sculpture, and their architecture. Every four days, Dogon people participate in markets with neighboring tribes, such as the Fulani and the Dyula. Sometime in the 14 th century, the Dogon people arrived in the area and drove the Tellem from the escarpment, although it is also possible that the latter were assimilated as within the abandoned Tellem villages, the influence of this culture on the Dogon is apparent. Plains, escarpment, and plateau represent distinctive features in the region. Photographs of masked dancers, first taken in 1907, as well as examples of native art work, soon made their way into Europe and the United States, catching the interest and curiosity of the Western world. The fundamental unit of Dogon social organization is the patrilineage, or ginna. Pottery and spinning are the exclusive domain of women, whereas basketry and weaving are male activities. ); Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City). Women may leave their husbands early in their marriage, before the birth of their first child. Each village is composed of one main lineage (occasionally, multiple lineages make up a single village) traced through the male line. Masks used during the yincomoli ceremony include the Yana Gulay, Satimbe, Sirige, and Kanaga. "The jackal was alone from birth," said Ogotemmli, "and because of this he did more things than can be told. Their bodies are treated Subsistence and Commercial Activities. A. [20] The religion embraced many aspects of nature which are found in other traditional African religions. The Hogon has to live alone in his house. The hogon is assisted in office by a sacrificial totem priest (yebene ), three bodyguards or policemen, a public crier or herald, and an ambassador who deals with other districts. The historical pattern included the murder of indigenous males by raiders and enslavement of women and children. (2008). The Fruit trees are valued possessions, and although they may be sold, the previous owner reserves the ownership of the field in which they are planted for his own use. [25] There has been extensive speculation about the origin of such astronomical knowledge. "[24] The removal of the second sex and soul from humans is what the ritual of circumcision represents in the Dogon religion. WebThe Hogon must live alone in his house. Marriages are endogamous in that the people are limited to marry only persons within their clan and within their caste.[29]. Clusters of from 5 to 6 of these villages center around water holes or wells, and each cluster is referred to as a "canton" or "district." Hogon live alone and should be celibate, but a village girl may act as a maid. It is thus mysterious that there are so few references to the planets in ancient literature. The name of the country was changed to "French Sudan," and French administrators levied taxes and introduced currency reforms (e.g., French francs to replace the native cowrie shells). Above the lineage is the much larger kin group called the clan, from which the various lineages emerge. The ritual language, "Sigi so" or "language of the Sigui", which was taught to male dignitaries of the Society of the Masks ("awa"), was considered a poor language. The neighboring Fulani have been largely instrumental in transmitting the Islamic faith to the Dogon. It is advisable to hire a guide with a car as the area is remote. Another minority practices Christianity. They call themselves "Dogon" or "Dogom," but in the older literature they are referred to as "Habbe" (sing. Political Organization. Each village celebrates for around a year before the 'sigi' moves to the next village. The cliffs and rocky terrain provided excellent protection from slave [33], The Dogon are among several African ethnic groups that practice female genital mutilation, including a type I circumcision, meaning that the clitoris is removed.[34]. Between 2010-2012 I worked in the Limerick City Archives. In comparison with the neighboring Fulani, animal husbandry is relatively unimportant. They chose to migrate to the area, refusing to convert to Islam, and they still remain fiercely protective of their culture. One relates to their coming from Mande, located to the southwest of the Bandiagara escarpment near Bamako. [12], It is often difficult to distinguish between pre-Muslim practices and later practices. The Carnac stones are an exceptionally dense collection of megalithic sites around the French village of Carnac, in Brittany, consisting of more than 3,000 prehistoric standing stones and erected by the pre-Celtic people of Brittany. Translation of 5,500-Year-Old Babel Text from China Reveals Oldest Known Map of Inner Solar System, The Gristhorpe Man: A Bronze Age Skeleton with a Story to Tell, 3: The Perfect Number - Trinity Symbolism in World Religious Traditions, Evidence that Noahs Ark Landed on a Mountain 17 Miles South of Ararat, The origins of human beings according to ancient Sumerian texts, The Truth Behind the Christ Myth: Ancient Origins of the Often Used Legend Part I, Library in Stone: The Ica Stones of Professor Cabrera Part I, Two Sides to Every Story: The North American Martyrs Shrines and Indigenous/ Roman Catholic Relations, The Origins of the Faeries: Encoded in our Cultures Part I, Curse of the Buried Pearl: The Hunt for Ancient Treasures Part I, The Enigma of the Shugborough Inscription, The Dogons Extraordinary Knowledge of the Cosmos and the Cult of Nommo, Those Who Once Reigned: Experts Name Famous and Forgotten Ancient Gods, The Legend of How Mansa Abu Bakr II of Mali Gave up the Throne to Explore the Atlantic Ocean, https://www.africabib.org/rec.php?RID=084681896, https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/africa/article/dogon-cultureprofane-and-arcane/47CD44EC412C57D64B141529BD52F19B, https://journals.openedition.org/articulo/417, Petra Historic World Heritage Site Blasted By Flash Floods, The Classical Gardens of Suzhou: A Sight to Behold, Denizens of South Africas Cradle of Humankind: The First Walking Apes, The Unfinished Timurid Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, The Magnificent Citadel of Erbil - A True Archaeological Sandwich, Kunta Kinteh - The African Island at the Heart of the Slave Trade. These caste groups live apart from the general population. [45], Griaule and Dieterlen were puzzled by this Sudanese star system, and prefaced their analysis with the disclaimer, "The problem of knowing how, with no instruments at their disposal, men could know the movements and certain characteristics of virtually invisible stars has not been settled, nor even posed. Corrections? Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. ); from Mali, Figure of a kneeling woman; circa 1500; wood; height: 35.2cm (1378 in. The Dogon are strongly oriented toward harmony, which is reflected in many of their rituals. . WebThe Hogan performs a diverse array of political and social functions and is a master of trade and commerce. The degree of complexity of the ceremonies depends upon the age and status of the deceased male. [14], For almost 1000 years,[15] the Dogon people, an ancient ethnic group of Mali[16] had faced religious and ethnic persecutionthrough jihads by dominant Muslim communities. The horse, symbolizing power and wealth, is Prior to the birth of the first child, the wife lives at the home of her parents, while her husband continues to reside in the bachelor quarters where he has lived from the age of 8 to 10. Marriage. African religions: Ritual and religious specialists. Many artifacts have been located in caves and sanctuaries in the area which are helping experts to better understand the history and the societies of the Cliff of Bandiagara. "hogon | African religious leader | Britannica", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hogon&oldid=1122616271, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 18 November 2022, at 14:57. The Mali landscape around Dogon (Spooner, J / CC BY 2.0 ). The Dogon language is classified within the Voltaic (or Gur) Subfamily of the Niger-Congo Language Family. Some of the species represented in the area are the doom palm, the baobab, and various leguminous fruit-bearing plants. WebAlthough the Dogon recognize the creator god Amma as the Supreme Being and address prayers and sacrifices to him, the core set of beliefs and practices focuses on ancestor According to this oral tradition, the first Dogon settlement was established in the extreme southwest of the escarpment at Kani-Na. In the past the Dogon were considered a warlike people; they often fought with other Dogon districts as well as with their non-Dogon neighbors such as the Fulani. The Dogon live in compact, occasionally walled villages built up the sides of the escarpment. Another 10% practices Christianity. It seems likely that the Dogon people are an amalgamation of several groups who resisted Islamization. [13] As the growth of cities increased, the demand for slaves across the region of West Africa also increased. It was first inhabited by the Tellem, Stone Age hunters, at least 10,000 years ago. There are over 200 Dogon villages across the escarpment and each village has a democratically elected headman (Hogon), who is also their spiritual leader. Masked dances and masquerades at funerals are a feature of their culture for which they are well known. But Islamic law classified the Dogon and many other ethnicities of the region (Mossi, Gurma, Bobo, Busa and the Yoruba) as being within the non-canon dar al-harb and consequently fair game for slave raids organized by merchants. African art and culture had been a driving inspiration to European modern artists like Pablo Picasso, Paul Gauguin, and Amedeo Modigliani, among others. [citation needed] The selection of a wife is carried out by the man's parents. Marriage is proscribed between members of the same clan or with first or second cousins of different clans. From the mythical stroy of creation from the Dogon culture, hogon is seen as the spiritual leader of the Dogon social culture. Unlike norms for the rest of society, parallel-cousin marriage is allowed within castes. 15th19th century. Today, at least 35% of the Dogon practice Islam. Their images or figures appeared on the female side of the Dogon sanctuary. Monogamy is the major form of marriage, although nonsororal polygyny with a limit of two wives is permitted. They speak the Dogon languages, which are considered to constitute an independent branch of the According to Dogon belief, they (hogon) are the "oldest direct descendant of the original ancestor." WebDogon Female Ancestor Sculpture. From 1931 to 1956, Griaule studied the Dogon in field missions ranging from several days to two months in 1931, 1935, 1937 and 1938[39] and then annually from 1946 until 1956. This page was last edited on 16 February 2023, at 14:24. Another indication of this is the subjectobjectverb basic word order, which Dogon shares with such early NigerCongo branches as Ijoid and Mande. As Greek mythology goes, the universe was once a big soup of nothingness. Encyclopedia of World Cultures. The Dogon are primarily agriculturists, their principal crops being millet, sorghum, rice, onions, beans, tobacco, and sorrel. Of the many fascinating fossil sites in Africa, an important one is the Cradle of Humankind outside of Johannesburg, South Africa. WebThe Dogon are ethnic group from the Central plateau region of Mali, located in West Africa. "[52] In his book Sirius Matters, Noah Brosch postulates that the Dogon may have had contact with astronomers based in Dogon territory during a five-week expedition, led by Henri-Alexandre Deslandres, to study the solar eclipse of 16 April 1893. Grain is stored in granaries. Identification. Domestic Unit. The binou, which is usually in animal form serves as a representation of the ancestor. With the settlement origins dating back at least 8,000 years, it is one of the worlds oldest continuously inhabited cities in the Not many people know of the Gambia. Each Dogon village, or enlarged family, is headed by one male elder. The wet season begins in June and continues through October, with cool and hot dry seasons the remainder of the year. Encyclopedia.com. They have been linked to the Mande subfamily but also to Gur. Circumcision is believed to eliminate the superfluous one. Each Dogon village, or enlarged family, is headed by one male elder. When a woman leaves her husband, she takes with her only the youngest childthe remaining children stay with the husband's family. Ancient Chinese Earthquake Detector Invented 2,000 Years Ago Really Worked! Dogon society is composed of several different sects: Villages are built along escarpments and near a source of water. The smiths have important ritual powers and are characteristically poor. The yingim consists of both the sacrifice of cows, or other valuable animals, and mock combat. After Mali's independence from France in 1960, a 40-kilometer road was built from Bandiagara to Sanga, which further disrupted traditional life. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there existcountless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts thathave yet to be discovered and explained. Among the Dogon, several oral traditions have been recorded as to their origin. One of its most distinctive features is the hierarchical series of occupational "castes" or status groups consisting of iron- and leatherworkers, griots (lineage genealogists), musicians, poets, and sorcerers. The problem of "twin births" versus "single births", or androgyny versus single-sexed beings, was said to contribute to a disorder at the beginning of time. 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